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Rajiv Goswami invited two people to his high school graduation: his tutor, Dylan, and his mother, who needed permission from a judge to attend. "This was the milestone I had to pass," Goswami said. Rajiv spent the past four years in the foster care system and by donning a cap and gown, he was beating the odds. Just a third of city kids in foster care get their high school diploma. Follow here to watch the New York 1 news report by education reporter Linsey Christ.

Months ago we shared the report from Washington State's Blue Ribbon Commission recommending the creation of a new state agency consolidating child welfare, early learning, and juvenile justice. The report recommends many changes in both internal organization and delivery of services to children and families. Many of these recommendations are informed by ACE science - both emerging and established best practices in child welfare, early learning and work with children and families. Washington...

After leaving foster care, Jessica Francis had to grow up alone, often looking to Google for guidance. “I had to figure out a lot of things on my own,” Francis said in an interview on the Foster Movement Podcast , produced by the Christian Alliance for Orphans (CAFO). In the podcast’s pilot episode, Francis shared her personal experience of navigating the foster care system starting at age of 12 before later pursuing higher education and career. Without any other options, young adults...

This article casts a lovely spotlight on a caring foster family while also highlighting the importance of trauma-informed care at one of the many private foster care agencies across the country incorporating ACE informed practice into the care and community supporting children who've experienced trauma. Private child placing agencies across the US work with state or county child welfare agencies to license and support foster parents. Many foster parents prefer to be licensed through a...

Thirty-two percent of children entering foster care in 2015 were placed because of parental drug abuse, and states around the country have seen the number of children in foster care rise in ways they haven't seen since crack because of the new drug problem in our country today - opioids. On June 20, the House of Representatives passed a bill that would change the way we deal with drug addiction treatment and recovery. If passed in the Senate, the law would make it easier to keep parent and...

Date: July 11th Time: 10 AM PST / 1 PM EST Location: Parenting with ACEs Group , Online Flyer: Attached below. Please share. Dr. Claudia M. Gold has practiced general and behavioral pediatrics for 25 years and specializes in early childhood mental health. She is on the faculty of the University of Massachusetts, Boston Infant-Parent Mental Health program, William James College, and the Austen Riggs Center where she is a Human Development consultant. Dr. Gold is author of the following...

Children who enter the foster care system often suffer from the effects of traumatic stress. The sources of their trauma may vary: they may be the victims of physical abuse, sexual abuse, or neglect-or they may be exposed to violence in their homes or communities. Similarly, many children who enter the child welfare system have experienced the loss of one or more significant adults in their lives, often through death or abandonment. Although the removal of a child from an abusive or...

Girls in foster care are more likely to be diagnosed with mental health conditions, be prescribed multiple medications and become pregnant as teenagers, according to a report by Wyoming researchers. The study, which was conducted over an 11-year period and followed more than 5,000 15-year-old girls to their 18th birthdays, shows stark disparities in the challenges its subjects face. For instance, nearly 30 percent of 743 foster care girls on Medicaid gave birth by the time they turned 18.

Beautiful talks by wonderful fathers and the children who love them. A father’s healthy relationship with his children is a cornerstone of resilience. I came across this TED playlist of nine talks that celebrate sweet dads . This resource share is not only a collection of inspirational TED Talks honoring the role of the father. The talks are both fathers, and children who love them. Each of these talks could be applicable to a variety of situations for professionals to share inspiration and...

Wednesday June 14th the Annie E. Casey Foundation released the 2017 Kids Count Data Book - State Trends in Child Well-Being. This comprehensive report is " a premier source of data on children and families." You can download the report from this post, as well as on the Kids Count website , where you can also access an interactive data map in their Data Center . This is an invaluable amount of data available to the public, relevant to anyone working with children and families - with the...

Zero To Three has partnered with YouTube star La Guardia Cross to develop a 4-part web series called Daddy Matters . The first three episodes are already available, along with many other developmentally-based fatherhood resources. Fathers are just as critical to healthy development, safety, and well-being as mothers. This father's day let's celebrate the ways in which father's contribute to their children's development! This light-hearted web series explores "why dads matter and what matters...

Parents with PTSD from ACEs sharing what's hard about parenting while post-traumatically stressed: "Managing the terror around the possibility of everyone being a perp." "How to talk to children about why they won't meet X relative." “There was a point when I would feel completely overwhelmed by something as simple as having to make breakfast and school lunches at the same time.” "I didn't understand that not all parents reacted or were triggered the way I was." "was stone set on not...